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Oakland → Dallas

OAK–DAL · Oakland International Airport to Dallas Love Field

Best bet

Either side

Both sides workThe two sides come out close to level.

Both sides have something going for them, and the totals come out close enough that picking one would be a coin flip with extra steps.

Flight paths move around. Treat this as the better bet, not a promise.

What you might see

In flight order, with distance measured from the representative route.

OAK to DAL: where each landmark sits relative to the routeA diagram of the representative route running left to right, with the departure airport at the left and the arrival airport at the right. Landmarks on the left side of the aircraft are plotted above the route line and landmarks on the right side below it, each at its distance from the route. The numbered list below this diagram carries the same information as text.OAKDALLEFT SIDERIGHT SIDE1234567891011
Distance from the route is to scale (up to 53 miles); the shaded ends are the 40-mile zones around each airport where the runway in use decides the view. Numbers match the list below. Hollow markers didn't count toward the recommendation.

  1. Half Dome

    LeftEarly18 mi off the route

    Half Dome is about 18 miles off the left, early in the flight.

    Good possibility

  2. Mono Lake

    LeftEarly41 mi off the route

    Early in the flight, Mono Lake sits roughly 41 miles to the left.

    Distant possibility

  3. Mount Whitney

    RightQuarter in53 mi off the route

    Look right about a quarter of the way in for Mount Whitney, about 53 miles out.

    Distant possibility

  4. Death Valley

    RightQuarter in49 mi off the route

    Death Valley is about 49 miles off the right, about a quarter of the way in.

    Distant possibility

  5. Lake Mead

    RightQuarter in40 mi off the route

    About a quarter of the way in, Lake Mead sits roughly 40 miles to the right.

    Distant possibility

  6. Zion National Park

    LeftQuarter in39 mi off the route

    Look left about a quarter of the way in for Zion National Park, about 39 miles out.

    Distant possibility

  7. Grand Canyon

    RightHalfway26 mi off the route

    Grand Canyon is about 26 miles off the right, around the halfway mark.

    Good possibility

  8. Lake Powell

    LeftHalfway38 mi off the route

    Around the halfway mark, Lake Powell sits roughly 38 miles to the left.

    Distant possibility

  9. Painted Desert

    RightHalfway42 mi off the route

    Look right around the halfway mark for Painted Desert, about 42 miles out.

    Distant possibility

  10. Canyon de Chelly

    LeftHalfway9 mi off the route

    Canyon de Chelly is about 9 miles off the left, around the halfway mark.

    Good possibility

  11. Sandia Mountains

    RightThree quarters12 mi off the route

    About three quarters of the way, Sandia Mountains sits roughly 12 miles to the right.

    Good possibility

The sun

Flying soon? Add your date and departure time and we'll work out where the sun should be, and which side gets less of it.

Airport codes or city names. SEA, Seattle, and Seattle-Tacoma all work.

Skip the date and you still get the landmark answer. Add it and we work out where the sun will be, using the departure airport's local time.

The route we used

1,465 mi
Great-circle distance
96°
Course out of OAK
110°
Course into DAL
11
Landmarks that counted

That is the shortest path between the two airports, used as a representative corridor rather than a flight plan. The first and last 40 miles are treated as uncertain, because that part of the flight is shaped by the runway in use and the published departure or arrival procedure. Anything in those zones is listed and marked, never counted toward the recommendation.

Left and right, from where?

Left and right are from your perspective sitting in the cabin, facing the front of the aircraft. Seat letters are not a reliable guide to which side you are on, because aircraft are configured differently.

Why this isn't guaranteed

Flights don't follow the same path every day. Runway configuration, weather deviations, traffic, and air traffic control all move the track around, and none of it is knowable in advance. We also have nothing to say about cloud cover, which is the other thing standing between you and Mount Rainier. The full method.

Flying the other way?

Dallas → OaklandEither side

Calculated from scratch, not by flipping this one. The landmarks arrive in the opposite order, the sun is somewhere else entirely, and the answer changes with them.

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